Means for holding articles



Jan. 2, 1934. WALD v 1,942,228

MEANS FOR HOLDING ARTICLES Filed July 14, 1931 1 11 v1! IIlll/I IIlIllIl/III INVENTOR JOHN R.WALD

BY a W ATTORNEY I Patented Jan. 2, 1934 MEANS FOR HOLDING ARTICLES John R. Wald, Huntingdon, Pa.

Application July 14, 1931. Serial No. 550,701

3 Claims.

This invention relates to means for holding articles and more especially to a means for positioning an article such as a glass reflector button for signs into an aperture in a plate-like member in such manner that it may be introduced into the member from one side and automatically held when so introduced from displacement in any direction without the necessity of operating any fastening means therefor.

holding means for an article in a plate aperture which would automatically hold the article in position against displacement in any direction by the mere introduction of the article into the aperture.

Another object is to provide a quickly-replaceable light reflector button for use with road signs of the character adapted to be lighted by the headlights of oncoming automobiles.

, Another object is to provide such a device adapted to be readily placed in position in the sign frame and replaced readily when broken and without the necessity of using any tools whatsoever.

All these and other objects as suggested herebelow are attained by the means now to be described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a cross sectional view through a diametral plane of the form of invention as applied to a light reflector button showing the construction of the device when positioned in a sign plate and also showing in cross section the ringlike member adapted to compress the means which holds the button in position from one side,

when it is desired to withdraw it.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the expanded ring means which serves to hold the button in position from one side.

Fig. 3 is a top. elevational view of the holding member in its final form as shown expanded in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of the device of Fig. 1 but modified by means of the members shown in Figs. 2 and 3, which is so arranged as to be held in position through the spring-like character of the material of which it is made, rather than being soldered or otherwise fastened in place as shown in Fig. 1.

And, Fig. 5 is a front elevational view of a portion of a sign showing one letter thereof.

which is painted in a color contrasting with its background to provide visibility during daylight,

and also containing a series of these light re- An object of the invention is to provide a flector buttons adapted to be illuminated at night to make the sign visible thenalso.

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views.

This invention, in the specific application disclosed for use with light reflector buttons for road signs, consists essentially of a button-like member 10 made of glass rother transparent (or translucent) material'containing a convex upper surface and a cylindrical or tapered lower or inner portion 10a as shown in Fig. 1, there being preferably a bead-like portion 10b around thelower edge for a purpose to be hereafter explained. The convex upper portion 10 projects somewhat outwardly from the immediately-ad- 7o jacent connecting portion 10a in manner as shown. The sign plate 11 which comprises the outer surface of the sign and on which the letters 12, Fig. 5, are painted in a contrasting color with the background of plate 11, consists preferably of sheet metal from which has been stamped a -series of apertures or holes 13 through which the button is introduced. The diameter of this aperture, if a hole, is somewhat smaller than the largest diameter of the convex projecting portion 10 of the button so that once inserted in position, the button cannot be forced farther inwardly. The immediately adjoining connecting portion of part 10a with part 10 of the button is somewhat smaller than the diameter 35 of this hole 13 to accommodate the holding means now to be described.

This holding means consists essentially of a ring-like member as shown in Fig. 3 formed from a strip of material cut or stamped into a pattern of the general character of that shown in Fig. 2, which consists of a series of long tongues 14, 14, alternately separated from a series of short holding tongues 15, 15, all said tongues being aflixed to a common lower portion. The simplest way of forming this is from a piece of spring-like steel or other resilient material.

Saw cuts or spaces 16', 16 are formed between tongues 14, 14-15, 15. Tongues 14 are somewhat longer than tongues 15 and terminate in an inwardly bent portion or lip 14a.

In the modification shown in Fig. 1, this hole-- ing ring with its tongues 14, 14--15, 15 is preferably soldered or otherwise held, as by welding, at 19 to a light reflector cup 17 which surrounds the lower portion of member 10a and extends across its lower or inner end preferably in a convex contour for the purpose offocusing the light back through the convex portion 10 'of the button. This reflector cup 1'7 is split down one side to permit it to be resiliently pressed over member a with its projecting bead 10b and so held in position thereon. The holding member is soldered to member 17 around the beadlikeportion at 19 and the tongues 14 are sufficiently long when so positioned to extend into the space beneath the shoulder of member 10 and the aperture 13 in plate 11; and the tongues 15 are also sufficiently long to extend immediately beneath the lower or inner surface of plate 11. This holding member is so formed that when I the button is pressed into place in aperture 13 from the upper or outer side of plate 11 that the plurality of tongues 14, 14-15, 15 are compressed from their normal resilient position by which they project away from the tapered surface of member 10a and the button is forced into place against the surface of plate 11. When all the way in, with the shoulder of "member 10 resting against the surface of plate 11, the stop tongues 15 spring outwardly to act as a stop against the inner surface of plate 11 around the edge of the aperture in manner as shown in Fig. 1

To readily withdraw. the reflector button from the sign, it is then only necessary to force a ring-like member shown in cross section at 18, Fig. 1 from the inside over the holding member to press inwardly the stop tongues 15, 15 as well as the flanged tongues 14, 14 to permit them to pass out through the aperture so that the button may be removed from the same side as it entered. I n

A modified form would include stop tongues 15, 15, being made of a somewhat bent contour, like tongues 14, 14 at 14a but with a somewhat steeper bent end so that the buttons could not be withdrawn by unauthorized persons along the road without having available a special gripping tool to get a good hold on member 10 around its shoulder and exert suflicient pressure to cam down these stop members with their steeper end angles and so to permit the withdrawal of the button. 5

Instead of soldering, the holding ring containing the tongues 14, 14-15, 15, may be made -with small rifles andv sling shots and by throwa ing stones, and it is frequently necessary to apply new buttons for the ones so damaged or stolen. Heretofore, these constructions have involved a number of complicated and expensive parts and the necessity of taking off the"back of the sign in order to replace a damaged button with a good one. By means of this construction, however, not only is the co'stof the individual button vastly reduced, but also the button may be inserted from the front of the sign (as in case the whole button'has been damaged by being broken and the parts pushed through into the interior of the sign) and a new one inserted by merely pressing it into place in the sign plate aperture. Or by means of the construction suggested above, a special gripping tool may be employed to grip the button while compressing the holding tongues or otherwise, and the button withdrawn from the front of the sign with a strong pull and another one inserted.

There are many other applications of this holding means which will occur to anyone skilled in the art. For instance, it may be employed wherever anything has to be positioned through any aperture in any plate-like member. Thus it might be used to hold two boxes together by merely boring holes of the proper diameter in their surface and pushing in a suitably formed holding member made after the manner of this invention; or it might be used to plug up an opening in a surface either permanently or in a manner which could be readily removed when needed; in this case, the plugging member might be of any desired contour on its outer end, such for instance as by being flat, to be made flush with the surface plugged, this being accomplished by counter-sinking the hole.

It is to be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only,

and that the invention is not limited thereto. To those skilled in the art, many modifications of the invention will be readily apparent, and it will also be obvious to such skilled persons that part of the means may be used without other105 parts thereof, many such combinations of the parts readily suggesting themselves. Therefore, it should be, and is to be distinctly understood that for a definition of the limitations of the invention, reference must be had to the appended claims.

Having now described the invention, what is claimed as new and for which Letters Patent of the United States is desired, is:-

1. 'In combination, a tapered reflecting unit, a

bead-like projection on the outer end thereof and a bead-like projection on the inner end thereof, a reflector cup removably attached over the beadlike projection and a holding member removably attached over the reflector cup and between the'1 20 two projections and in such manner that the unit when positioned in; the aperture of a sign plate will be held therein against movement in either direction.

2. A holding member in a light reflector button be cammed inwardly, the difference in length be tween the two sets of tongues being somewhat greater than the thickness of the member in which the button is to be positioned.

3. Holding means for removably holding an article in the somewhat larger apertureof a sec- '135 0nd article, including a member surrounding the first-named article and positioned in the space between it and the aperture of the second-named article, and a second member nested in said memher and having resilient tongues adapted to move 1 o outwardly under the surface of the second-named member when the first-named member has been positioned therein, both the first-named member and the nested member being positioned between shoulders in the first-named member to prevent 1 5 endwise movement thereon in either direction.

JOHN R. WALD. 

